Sussex's match against Australia is a sell-out

There won’t be an empty seat in sight when Sussex Sharks take on Australia at The 1st Central County Ground, Hove next Thursday June 7.

All 6,000 tickets for the floodlit 50-over match have now been sold.

The opportunity to see Sussex take on the reigning World Champions in their first match under new head coach Justin Langer has proved extremely popular.

Langer’s Sussex counterpart and former team mate, Jason Gillespie is taking the match very seriously: “We want to win this game. We want to test ourselves against the best. We know we're going to be underdogs but we're going to fight hard and try and win.

“It's always been a bit of a frustration of mine seeing touring side comes over and the opposition picking teams that are well below full strength. I've got no problem resting the odd player, but this it's a great opportunity for our lads to test their skills against an international side.”

Gates open at 12.30pm, with play starting at 2pm. As this is a sold-out match, spectators are requested to arrive early to ensure a speedy entry into the ground.

Absolutely no tickets will be available on the gate, but supporters who have missed out can still watch every ball thanks to a live stream of the match. Full details are available via the Sussex Cricket Match Centre.

Thursday’s sell out is representative of a wider trend for Sussex matches this season. Tickets sales for Sussex Sharks’ Vitality Blast T20 matches are up 19% compared to the same point last year. Sales are up 74% year-on-year for the Sharks’ first home match in the competition, against Surrey on Friday 13th July.

There will be another opportunity for cricket fans to enjoy Sussex Sharks taking on top quality Australian opposition on Friday 8th June.

Both the Sussex men and women’s team will be playing T20 matches against the 2018 Aboriginal XIs that are in England to commemorate 150 years since an Aboriginal cricket team became the first sporting team from Australia to tour internationally.

The 2018 Aboriginal XIs include four players who currently or have previously represented Australia – including Dan Christian and D’Arcy Short.

Entry for the Friday fixtures is FREE and no ticket is required. Gates will open at 9.30am, with the women’s match starting at 11am and the men’s match following at 3pm.